This tomato, ricotta and basil antipasto is a twist on a caprese salad. It’s simple, unique and delicious and a great way to use summer tomatoes in a different way.
*Edited on September 30, 2015 to add new photos, but originally published on March 15, 2012.
I am so excited!!! I just came up with this idea tonight after not having bread (wanted to make bruschetta) or mozzarella (Plan B was a Caprese salad!)
What I did have was ricotta and I had this lovely vision and it looked like this:
This appetizer is so easy! Slice tomatoes, place on a plate, and sprinkle with Kosher salt. Top with a small spoonful (I used a melon-baller) of ricotta. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, then sprinkle with chopped fresh basil, ta dah!
Good ricotta and tomatoes will make all the difference!
I have discovered the best ricotta I’ve had outside of Italy, and it’s made by Grande Cheese Company. It comes in a 3 lb tub, but it lasts quite a long time (over a week once it’s opened.) It makes EVERYTHING taste incredible! I used to buy it surreptitiously at Whole Foods via their kitchen area (not sold to the public)!
The first time I tasted this ricotta was a few years ago when I had a piece of pizza at Whole Foods. It had mozzarella, ricotta and roasted garlic on top. I took one bite of the ricotta on the pizza and walked straight back inside to find out which brand of cheese it was. Yes, it’s that good!
For those of you in the Los Angeles area, I have now found Grande ricotta at Monte Carlo Deli on Magnolia in Burbank, for half the price that Whole Foods used to sell it to me! If the only kind of ricotta you’ve ever had is Polly-O or Frigo, do yourself a favor and try Grande, it’s the way ricotta should taste–you won’t regret it!
Buon Appetito!
Tomato, Ricotta and Basil Antipasto
Ingredients
- 4 oz of top quality ricotta cheese
- 2 medium sized, firm tomatoes, sliced
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- sprinkle of sea salt
- chopped basil
Instructions
Arrange the tomato slices on a flat serving plate.
Top with a small scoop of ricotta, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with the sea salt and chopped basil. Serve.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size:
1 tomato in slicesAmount Per Serving:Calories: 169 Total Fat: 14g Unsaturated Fat: 7g Protein: 6g
This is one of the original photos I had in this post. I’m leaving it here as I used to think this was a good photo, and to remind myself that there’s always room for improvement.
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David
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What a lovely first course! Or I can also see it as a “between” courses delight! And it couldn’t be simpler… hoping for some fresh goat ricotta this weekend at the market!
Christina
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Oooh, I love any kind of goat cheese! Lucky you!
Cathie Berlin
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Great idea Christina,
It never would have occurred to me to use Ricotta- as I usually use a buffalo mozzarella. I hope I can find the Grande Ricotta somewhere in Orange County. Thanks for the awesome tip.:)
Christina
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Thanks, Cathie! If you can’t find Grande (my store doesn’t carry it anymore), Angelo and Franco has good ricotta, too, as well as Di Stefano. Lots of real Italian cheese companies here now! :)
Valentina
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What a beautiful presentation. I know what I’m doing with these final weeks of my dad’s garden tomatoes!
Christina
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Good for you! :)
Wendy
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Never thought about using the ricotta….Looks delish.
Christina
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I hadn’t either, Wendy, but desperate times call for desperate measures! haha!
Cathy
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Absolute perfection. I love making homemade ricotta and tomatoes are at their peak so guess what I will be making this weekend. Thank you!!!
Christina
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Remind me to tell you about homemade ricotta! :)
Sue Crum
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Oh wow! Mouth watering tomatoes and fresh ricotta. I was wondering what else I would do with that much ricotta — I searched your recipes and you have several recipes using ricotta. Now to find the ricotta in my area! I will soon be picking my green tomatoes and packing them in a box with newspaper. They will begin ripening over the next several weeks so I can enjoy your recipe for quite awhile with fresh tomatoes!
Christina
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Oh yes, I do love ricotta and I do have lots of recipes using it: pancakes, pasta, cheesecake, and cookies, at minimum. Lucky you that you have tomatoes from your garden! Have you ever pickled green tomatoes? One of the best things my mother ever made!
Mimi
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A beautiful classic appetizer. I myself have probably deleted a year’s worth of posts because of my photos, so I completely understand! It’s good to see improvement!
Christina
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Oh no! Why did you delete them? That’s a lot of work to throw away, Mimi! You can always hide them by making them drafts, then update the photos and bring them back again.
Irene
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Can’t wait to try this!
When I was first married, 43 years ago in Japan, I wanted to make real spaghetti sauce. The marinara I’d been making my entire life. Problem was, sauce came in 250 g cans. Not enough to make a Sunday sauce. One day we went into an Italian restaurant for dinner and saw, used as decoration, 1K colorful cans of crushed tomatoes. My good-natured husband negotiated a price and I went on a spending spree of reusable containers and filled up my freezer.
Christina
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What a lovely story, Irene! I love it! Hope you enjoy this, too! :)
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[…] Tomato, Ricotta and Basil Antipasto […]
Lauren @ Sew You Think You Can Cook
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What a fabulous twist to the caprese. It’s beautifully presented and I want some! I am in the LA area, I’ll have to look for the Grande ricotta.
Christina
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Oh you’re going to flip, Lauren!! Let me know what you think after you’ve tasted it!
Andrea @ Cooking with Mamma C
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I appreciate a lady who knows her ricotta! I’m cracking up about you marching into the kitchen at Whole Foods and getting them to sell you the ricotta. It’s something my Mom would do. I’ll have to look for the Grande brand. Your appetizers look delicious!
Christina
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Well, I didn’t actually march “into” the kitchen, but it was close! ;) Thanks, Andrea!
Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy
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The perfect little light and fresh starter. These always go down so well at dinner parties.
Christina
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Exactly!
Pooja@poojascookery.com
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what a great recipe.. sounds fun.
Christina
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:)
Holly
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This recipe sounds so simple and delicious! I’ve never heard of Grande Cheese Company ricotta but I’m gonna make it a mission to find it now. Thanks for the tip and the recipe!
Christina
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Good luck, Holly! I hope you can find it!
Catherine
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What a delightfully simple and elegant appetizer. I love this idea…I must try it soon. xoxo, Catherine
Christina
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Thank you, Catherine! I’m so glad you like it!
allie @ Through Her Looking Glass
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I love simple and delicious. What a great appetizer, so simple and pretty. I must find and try that Grande ricotta around here. We are just getting a Whole Foods, so maybe when I go to the grand opening I can check it out.
Christina
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Ohh, thank you, Allie! Yes, it’s really the best brand I’ve found and everyone who tastes it agrees! One friend added it to her book launch party menu after trying my tub! It’s that good! ;)
Marye
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Yum! This looks like a delicious appetizer, I can’t wait to try it!
Bruschetta…I’ll even tell you how to pronounce it!
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[…] Tomato Ricotta and Basil Antipasto […]